What I wish I had known this time last year:- what would help before university

Coming to a top University such as Warwick has its own pressures in the preceding year. From the high grades to achieve, and the stress that goes with that, there are some things that I think it is worth knowing:

1. ‘A’ levels – keep your notes! Some of your notes will be relevant at university; for example, the sociology and Marxism I studied is similar to the Politics course content this year.

2. Have a great summer – it is a long period of time to really enjoy yourself- why not plan day trips with your friends or even a holiday? Make sure you are fully rested before university because although terms at Warwick run for ten weeks, this makes them workload intense.

3. Complete IT registration – this will mean access to module course information, reading lists and much more

4. The dreaded summer reading list– just before I finished my ‘A’ level exam, I was sent a summer reading list for PPL. I began to put a lot of pressure on myself to read these books. However, since starting the course there are some books that would have been more beneficial to me than others. If you are doing PPL I would suggest looking briefly at these books as it will make your life much easier when you arrive:

• Gorgias- Plato- you will most likely be covering this in Philosophy and would be great for you to get a head start

• If you pick tort law: McBride and Bagshaw Tort Law- I did not choose criminal law so could not advise you for that.

• Politics by Andrew Heywood

You need not buy these books as once you have completed IT registration you will have online access to these

5. Don’t buy the whole of Ikea– it is exciting moving to university and it is a great chance to buy items for your ‘new home’. I think I brought a little too much with 2 car journeys and, due to accumulation, probably 3 when I return back to my family home. The university accommodation team send you a list of what to buy and pack – try to stick to it.

6. Warwick’s postal system– did you know that on the University website there is a brief note about your accommodation postal address. The campus is large and if you want your post to arrive correctly, please refer to it; there is a unique code per room and block of campus accommodation.